Micah Parker, a veteran collegiate basketball coach, has been named the director of athletics at California Baptist University, ending a year-long search. He will begin his duties Aug. 3.

Parker returns to athletics after a 17-month hiatus during which he served as the headmaster at the Lutheran South Academy in Houston, Texas. Prior to that assignment, Parker spent more than 17 years as a collegiate basketball coach.

“We feel that Micah is a rising star in athletic administration. He is someone who is deeply committed to his faith and has shown strong integrity and character in his professional history,” said Kent Dacus, CBU vice president for enrollment and student services. “While he has a strong passion for intercollegiate athletics, he fully understands the bigger picture of university life and operating within the entire university structure.”

Most recently, Parker was the top assistant women’s basketball coach at NCAA Division I Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, from 2003-07. Parker also spent eight seasons as an assistant men’s basketball coach at NAIA Concordia University in Seward, Neb., and was head women’s coach for four years.